KOLKATA: Just like students, teachers in most schools have been home for the past 18 months, taking online classes. But now that the state has announced reopening of schools and colleges from November 16, teachers at most institutes have been told to return to campuses and practise online teaching from there so that the hybrid mode can roll out smoothly.
CISCE schools that reopened this week after the Puja vacation have asked their teachers to come in before Diwali and take online classes from campuses, while CBSE schools have asked them to come in from November 8, when the institutes re-open after Diwali.
“We are about to hold our meetings with teachers but we have told all of them to be ready to return to campus from November 8, when we re-open,” said Koeli Dey, principal at Sushila Birla Girls’ High School. Lakshmipat Singhania Academy has also asked its teachers to come back from November 8.
Wi-fi connections at most schools are being upgraded so that teachers taking online classes from the premises do not face any glitch. They will sit in large halls or a classroom, from where they will conduct their classes. Schools have told teachers that when campuses do re-open, quite a few children are expected to still attend online classes from home as their parents are not likely to give their consent to send them to school. “So, we have told our teachers that they will have to take hybrid classes from school ins spite of some children coming in. Teachers will start coming to the campus and get used to teaching from here,” said John Stephen, acting principal at La Martiniere for Boys.
A special routine will be drafted for teachers and students’ timetables will also be tweaked as schools plan to start with classes IX and XI. After these two classes settle down a bit and the hybrid system rolls out smoothly, classes X and XII will be called in. “So we will have to rearrange teachers’ routines in such a way that those who taking care of board-year students are not burdened with IX and XI. Teachers will have to get used to addressing students in the classroom, writing on the board and at the same time, adjust the laptops in such a way that those at home can attend properly,” said Richard Gasper, principal of St Augustine’s Day School, Kolkata.
Principals and some heads of departments, who have been visiting schools on and off, were being provided transport. But schools have now made it clear that it will not be possible to send vehicles for so many teachers and so, they will have to make their own arrangements. All teachers have also been asked to confirm about their vaccination status.
